Caught
by Lychee Green Tea
Summary: postBuu. During a routine arrest, Videl and Gohan manage to meet an interesting bank robber. At the end of the day, said bank robber may reconsider their choice of lifestyle... GV one-shot


Finally; a longer one-shot from me! With a whopping 3 280 words, this is now my longest one-shot! Enjoy!

**Disclaimer: I do not own Dragonball or Dragonball Z in any way and in no way do I gain a profit for writing fanfiction.**

**Caught**

It's weird how the human mind works. For centuries now, grey clouds, a rainy day and cold weather have symbolized gloominess and depression. Why couldn't it have been the opposite, though? Why couldn't the dull colours of the sky have meant cheerfulness instead? In fact, many people have even dubbed the coldness as a 'bad day' even if their day actually went quite well.

Well, it's a good thing it wasn't a 'bad day' then, or else Videl Satan would have been thoroughly annoyed.

The sun was shining, birds were chirping, and it was the beginning of spring after a cold winter, so that meant new life for many animals. The citizens of Satan City were in an especially good mood because the weather was finally looking up after such a cold season.

Videl found herself humming a familiar tune as she prepared herself for her day. Why was she in such a good mood? Spring break, of course! The break from school was much deserved on her part, and it also meant that a certain classmate of hers had a bit more spare time…

She reached for her shoulder-length locks and carefully tied her hair into a ponytail. She frowned as her bangs fell in front of her face annoyingly; it was just one of those bangs that wasn't short but wasn't long and just _stayed there_ in front of her eyes no matter what.

Videl looked herself over in the mirror one last time. She had on a long, white shirt that fit her form nicer than the baggy t-shirts she used to wear. The long sleeves grew wider as they reached down her arms, and the collar was wide enough that it slipped past her shoulders, but it was narrow enough to stay in place and not fall off her slim figure. A pair of black shorts peeked out from just under her shirt. It was a very simple outfit, but she hadn't changed so much in the past year in that her style would change drastically enough to match someone like Erasa's.

Ah, yes, the day was looking great. Videl glanced at her clock and realized it was just about time to leave. A smile graced her lips and she figured she would catch a quick bite to eat before she had to…

'_Miss Videl! There's a bank robbery along Lychee Street and Green Tea Avenue! This one's a big one! Please hurry!'_

Oh…! Nevermind.

* * *

"Miss Videl! Thank goodness you made it here so quickly!" The Chief of Police exclaimed as the young woman arrived at the scene.

Videl quickly took in her surroundings before she ducked behind the police cars the other officers were shielding themselves with.

"What's the situation here?" She asked.

Now, Sow Ercream had been in the police business for as long as he could remember. He knew many of the officers extremely well; he was even well acquainted with some of their families. As such, he also knew Videl Satan as a crime fighting heroine. Officer Ercream was still astounded every time he saw the young woman looking so…beautiful. It wasn't a secret that Hercule Satan's daughter was extremely attractive, but it was always known that she kind of…hid her beauty from the world. It wasn't until up about a year ago that he had noticed a change in her appearance.

Ercream shook his head, clearing his thoughts as he answered the question asked of him, "I don't know what went wrong here, Miss Videl. There's only one bank robber in there! A blonde woman in her mid thirties, I'd say. Since we've got the place surrounded she can't get out, but we can't get in." He answered.

"Has she taken a hostage, then?" Videl asked, knowing the question wasn't even necessary. Of course she had taken a hostage!

"Surprisingly, no."

Why was the world so against her today?

"She…hasn't even taken _one_ hostage?" Videl asked; completely bewildered.

"Negative. She let all of the bank's employees and customers out of there. They're completely unharmed, if not a little traumatized by the events. The woman's just crazy with that machine gun of hers and every time we try to get in, she goes ballistic!" Ercream said.

"Thanks for the info. chief. I'm goin' in!" Videl said, getting up from her crouched position.

"Please be careful! Now with Saiyaman…er…Gold Fighter…umm…whatever that black haired kid's name is…anyways, with him retired from the crime fighting business there's no telling what might happen, Miss Videl." Ercream warned.

"Don't worry about me. Besides, if things get too bad out there Gohan always comes to my rescue." Videl winked as she jumped over the police cars and into the clearing right outside of the bank.

It wasn't exactly public knowledge that Gohan was Saiyaman and the Gold Fighter. After all, there were no reporters camping out on Chi-Chi's beautiful front lawn, now was there? A lot of people did remember him from the tournament, but no one knew his name, and the students of Orange Star High surprisingly didn't announce it to every reporter in the world. It was partly because Videl bribed them, and partly because she threatened them. Though, the police officers did know him a bit better because of their involvement with fighting crime.

Videl put on a confident smirk like she always did, and called for the woman to come out of the bank. Before she knew it, a blonde woman did come out of the bank with her machine gun placed threateningly in her hands.

The outfit she was wearing reminded Videl a lot of Erasa, in fact. A green top and shorts. If it wasn't for the fact that she also had long, wavy hair and a red bandana, she might have accidentally mistaken the criminal for her best friend.

"Look, let's make this quick, alright? I'm gonna be late for my date." Videl said nonchalantly, but secretly smiling at her last comment. Man, the girls at school would've killed her…or at least tried to kill her, for a date with Gohan.

"Well unless you let me leave here with the dough, your pathetic little boyfriend is just gonna have to wait!" She shouted. Videl inwardly cringed at her voice. It was very rough and had some sort of accent, and it wasn't exactly a pleasant voice, to say the least.

"Sorry, but that's not gonna happen. Now if you give us back that money, the judge just might consider shortening your sentence by a few years." Videl said as she slid into a fighting stance.

The blonde woman scowled as she began shooting at Videl wildly. The officers ducked behind their cars as the stream of bullets came flying everywhere, and they could only hope that the young crime fighter would be alright.

Videl was dodging the bullets with ease as she slowly made her way closer to her opponent to knock her out. Videl did have to give her credit, though, because her aim was extremely good. It had been a while since she had dealt with a criminal that wasn't as simplistic as all the others. This criminal had a mind of her own and did things the way she wanted, and she had the skill to match it.

Then again, what could beat a seven-year-old half-saiyan throwing pebbles at her?

Videl's eyes widened as five bullets sped through the air in her direction. Those last ones were just a diversion so these ones could hit her!

Too bad for blondie.

Videl channeled her ki into her palm and she quickly caught the first four in her hand and dodged the last one just in time. She smirked as she saw the bewildered expression on the other woman's face as one-by-one, the four bullets fell to the ground harmlessly.

To Videl's surprise and slight curiosity, the blonde woman smirked as well.

"Hey, not bad. You're super fast and you can even use your ki." She remarked, "You remind me of a friend of mine called Tien."

…Okay, now this was new.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Videl exclaimed as she held her hands out in front of her in a mock time-out. "Tien?! As in Tien Shinhan?! Just who are you?" Videl asked.

"What? I should ask you the same thing! How do _you_ know Tien?!" The criminal woman asked in frustration.

Is it a plane? Is it a bird? No, it's Saiya…! No wait, it's the Gold Fighter! No, that can't be right; he isn't gold today. It's…ah…whatever his name is! And before anyone knew it, Gohan landed gracefully in between the two women and faced Videl with the signature grin on his face.

"Oh, hey. Man, am I that late?" Videl asked; her mood completely changed after seeing his familiar face.

"No, you're not late. I was just on my way and I sensed you down here." Gohan replied.

"Well, just let me wrap this up and we can go. If you haven't noticed, Mr. Observant, you're in the middle of a bank robbery." She quirked her eyebrow in a knowing way and smirked. "By the way, do you know that woman over there? She knows that guy named Tien." Videl stated as she pointed at the said criminal.

It was obvious to Gohan that the blonde was the criminal since she was holding a bag of cash and a machine gun, but why would Tien ever associate himself with thieves? And she did look somewhat familiar…

"G…Goku?" She stuttered out, not believing her own eyes. "Wow, it really is you! You've changed so much! You cut your hair…and…you have a new look. I gotta say the jeans and button-up shirt look great on you. But you haven't aged a day since I last saw you…" She trailed off, almost as though she were a little jealous.

Now Gohan was really confused. Both his eyebrows arched up high as he stared at her questioningly.

"Sorry, but Goku's actually my father. I'm his son Gohan. And um…who are you?" Gohan asked.

"Oh! So you're Goku's kid! Man, I wasn't gonna say anything earlier since I thought you were Goku, but are you ever gorgeous!" She exclaimed. This only earned her a stare, a glare and a 'hmph!' from Videl. "Anyways, they call me Launch. I'm sure you've heard lots about me."

The triumphant smirk on Launch's face only made Videl more annoyed.

'_Oh please! And I thought I didn't like her before! If she really is a friend of Gohan's father, then she's old enough to be Gohan's mom, and here she is hitting on him like the girls at school! And what kind of a name is Launch anyways? It's like a name in some stupid TV show where the writer decides to name all his characters after puns! Who would do that, anyway?'_ Videl thought.

"Uh…well…" Gohan stammered as he tried to remember her name. He maybe might have seen a picture of her at one time in his life… "Your name doesn't ring a bell!" He sheepishly laughed. If this was an anime show, then Videl and Launch would both fall down onto the ground 'anime style' but this author thinks that would hurt a lot…for normal people anyways, so she isn't gonna make them do that.

All three people turned their heads in surprise when they heard a sudden click. It was none other than the Chief of Police, Sow Ercream, who had snuck up on Launch and handcuffed her while she was distracted.

"Thanks a lot for the help you two!"

"No pr-"

"I don't know how you managed to do it without even landing a single punch on her, though."

"Well it-"

"Only the two of you could ever manage that!" Ercream said happily while he subconsciously didn't even let the two teenagers let in a single word. "See you both later, and have fun on your date!" He walked off with Launch saying something about being young and in love.

As Gohan was about to follow the chief, he felt a tug on his arm and noticed it was Videl. He quirked his eyebrow questioningly and she grabbed onto his arm and walked away from the crime scene with Gohan.

"If you wanna help her, then don't. She's a criminal and deserves to be put in jail. Besides, if she really was a friend of everyone else, she can just call Bulma." Videl said as they walked together. "So, let's get outta here before your fan girls start chasing you down and go on our date." She said with a wink.

"Alright, you win." Gohan smiled and agreed, following her away from Launch and the police officers.

* * *

The sound of heels echoed down the barren halls of the institute. The police officer walking in front of her was wearing the short-sleeved version of their uniform since it was starting to get nice and warm in the city once again.

The woman wasn't exactly happy, but she wasn't angry either. She was only a little peeved off at the fact that she had to fly all the way to Satan City when she had received a call on her _very_ private and _very_ personal phone.

Bulma walked into the designated room and saw a blonde woman sitting on one end of a metal table. The officer who had escorted her to the visiting room took his place standing guard as she sat down on the other end of the table.

"So, you finally managed to get yourself caught." Bulma said to break the ice.

"It wasn't no ordinary cop." Launch retorted, trying desperately to redeem herself after years and years of escaping the police with ease. She motioned to cross her arms, but realized that both of her hands were cuffed and she scowled.

"Oh, then who was it then?" Bulma inquired, slightly curious.

"It was some girl. I think her name was Videl or whatever."

"Well, you should've known better than to rob a bank in Satan City. Videl's been a volunteer crime fighter for years, and if she wasn't volunteering, she'd be the highest paid officer they had." Bulma said.

"Thanks for telling me now!"

"And by the way, Videl's boyfriend is none other than Gohan. So basically, if anyone messes with her, they mess with _Goku's_ son!" Bulma said instead as she ignored the last remark.

"I already knew that." Launch retorted.

"So you mean you already knew that and you still wanted to rob a bank in this city?" Bulma asked, now completely curious.

"Of course not! He showed up in the middle of the fight between me and Little Miss Hot Shot. I think the chick was late for their date or whatever."

Bulma nodded silently and the two women sat in a comfortable silence. It was their first meeting in years, and considering the situation, it could have been a lot more awkward.

"So how've you been? We haven't seen you in ages, Launch." Bulma said; her voice softer.

"Okay, I guess. Up until now I was havin' the time of my life robbin' banks. How's uhh…well…how's Tien these days?"

"Who knows? He comes to our reunions once in a while, but he always disappears somewhere to train."

"Oh…" Launch said. "Gohan sure looks like Goku. I even thought it was Goku when he landed." She commented half-heartedly.

This comment earned Launch a good laugh from Bulma, "Yeah, Gohan's a lot like his dad. And Videl reminds me a lot of Chi-Chi when she was her age. Of course, Videl isn't crazy about marriage at all, and she's more interested in martial arts. She managed to beat Yamcha the other day when they were sparring!" Bulma said.

"She beat Yamcha?! No way! How'd she do it?!"

"Gohan trains her, of course. He actually used to fight crime with Videl, too, but then he had to give it up because he's too busy with schoolwork and training. Actually, Gohan spends practically every minute of his life with Videl these days. They go to the same school so they always do homework together, they train together when Goku isn't training with Gohan, and then of course, being average teenagers, they go to parties and go out on dates. Those two are pretty much inseparable!"

By this time in Bulma's speech, Launch was finding herself getting…sleepy for some reason. Funny; she had gotten plenty of sleep before the robbery and it was only morning. Launch then noticed Bulma's cheerful look as she spoke. Oh! Right, Bulma. She had forgotten how talkative the blue-haired woman could be. Actually, if Launch remembered correctly, then that meant that…

"I mean, there was this one time…"

Oh no, not the 'this-one-time' stories!

"…and I was over at Goku's and I got completely soaked from the rain, so Chi-Chi said she had some clothes for me. I wasn't too happy though since I thought she was gonna lend me some of her clothes. Her style isn't exactly current, if you know what I mean. But being the good friend that I am, I didn't say anything to make Chi-Chi angry."

Blah…

"Anyways, we ended up in Gohan's room of all places and half of his closet is filled with Videl's clothes! I mean, any normal person would think they were sleeping together or something! You know what they say, after all; once a couple's closet is filled with each others' clothes they could probably move in together."

Blah…

"…But apparently it's only because she has to shower and change every time they finish training."

Blah…

"I still make fun of Gohan for it though, 'cause I still think they're sleeping together. I mean, come on! What century is this exactly? Most nineteen-year-olds aren't even virgins anymore!"

Blah…

"And I think the term 'most' applies to Gohan without a doubt. He's got himself a girlfriend as beautiful as Videl, after all, so they're definitely not virgins anymore."

Blah!

Bank robbing had always been exciting for Launch. The thrill of the moment, the tension in the air, the smell of fresh gunpowder in the early morning or late into the night. She didn't mind being surrounded by dozens or even hundreds of cops. She didn't even mind getting shot at. She didn't even care about being humiliated and caught by the son of one of her greatest friends. Even being thrown into jail and having to wear one of those atrocious striped uniforms didn't come remotely close to having to deal with getting her ears rung out by Bulma!

Launch was so caught up in her musings that she didn't notice the faint tingle coming from her nose…

'_Ugh! I am never gonna rob a bank again if I have to deal with this from now on!'_

"ACHOO!"

* * *

**Author's Note:**

I usually don't do a long author's note at the end of my one-shots, but I think this one deserves a tiny bit of an explanation for those of you haven't watched Dragonball.

The character Launch (or Lunch) is an old character from back in the Dragonball days. As mentioned in this one-shot, she's a bank robber and robbing a bank was how she was first introduced into the anime.

Now, to explain that sneeze. This character suffers from dissociative identity disorder (formerly known as multiple personality disorder), and whenever she sneezes, she changes into a fun-loving, sweet and innocent girl. Since it's anime, her appearance also changes from blonde to indigo hair.

She's such an old character that I don't see anyone writing about in any of those epic Dragonball Z fanfictions anymore. I was watching the digitally remastered version of Dragonball Z, where Funimation doesn't cut anything out, and noticed that Launch was in one of the episodes when Tien was training. (As a side note, some people pair up Launch and Tien sometimes as a romantic couple. I never watched enough of Dragonball to understand why, but, you get the idea.) Then I figured, "Well, since she's a bank robber, and Videl catches bank robbers in Satan City...ehh why not?"

The Chief of Police's name was a pun on the sour cream Pringles sitting next to me.

Thanks for reading, and please spare a few seconds to leave a review! It'd be much appreciated!

P.S - Does anyone think I should change the rating either lower or higher? I wasn't sure what to do because of Bulma's naughty mouth -winks-


End file.
